1. Field
This invention generally relates to music, specifically to an improved musical keyboard.
2. Background
A conventional piano keyboard arranges keys linearly from left to right. The front key area of a piano keyboard contains only the wide front parts of the white keys. In the front key area the seven notes of the C major scale (C,D,E,F,G,A, and B) are repeated for each successive octave. The rear key area of a piano keyboard contains the narrow rear parts of the white keys with the raised black keys interleaved. In the rear key area the 12 notes of the chromatic scale (C,C#,D,D#,E,F,F#,G,G#,A,A#, and B) are repeated for each successive octave. There are two pairs of white keys (B to C and E to F) that are separated by a half step (semitone) rather than a whole step (whole tone). These keys don't have a black key interleaved between them. This gives rise to the familiar visual and tactile octave landmark system of the piano, with each octave containing two groups: a group of two black keys interleaved between three white keys, and a group of three black keys interleaved between four white keys.
A conventional piano keyboard does not make efficient use of key area. The front key area is well situated to be played by the thumb. The rear key area is well situated to be played by the other four fingers. Both the front and rear key areas are much longer front to back than the actual surface area of the contact between a finger and a key. The large key area and linear arrangement of keys makes even an electronic piano keyboard large and bulky. Specialized furniture or stands are needed to locate a piano keyboard in convenient relation to a computer. A conventional electronic piano keyboard cannot be played on a user's lap, or while seated in a car or plane. Flexible portable keyboards, that roll up when not in use, are commercially available, but these still require a large flat surface while they are in use. In live performance, a keyboard is generally placed on a stand. This prevents the musician from moving around the stage and interacting with the audience.
The conventional music notation system does not provide a simple method of finding which key to play on a piano keyboard. White spaces and black lines do not correspond to white and black keys. Furthermore, because it is one-dimensional, a piano keyboard is not well suited for display as a graphic on a tablet computer, cell phone, or computer monitor with a rectangular aspect ratio.
It is desirable to concentrate visual attention on the sheet music, and play by touch alone. It is difficult to play the piano by touch. A typical hand spans from one to two octaves. While playing a conventional piano, each hand is moved freely from left to right, to span the set of notes currently being played, as well as those in the immediate future. The position of the hand over the octave landmark system is random, and continuously changing, causing confusion. Furthermore, the thumb is usually positioned in the front key area, where there are only white keys, thus it is difficult to establish a reference position using the thumb. A musical keyboard that minimizes changes in hand position, analogous to a typewriter keyboard, would be advantageous.
It is common to find adjacent octaves being played simultaneously in piano music. On a conventional piano this requires the use of two fingers, the thumb and pinky. It can be difficult to play fast passages where there is movement between white and black keys in octaves. Children and people with small hands can also find the stretch uncomfortable.
It is desirable for a keyboard synthesizer to be able to emulate other instruments, such as the guitar. In order to accurately capture the strumming and picking effects used by guitarists, it would be useful to connect a strumming device to a keyboard, and finger the notes with one hand, while strumming with the other hand. Common guitar chords cover a range of up to three octaves. These chords cannot be played using only one hand on a piano keyboard.